Exploring the impact of forced teleworking on counterproductive work behavior: the role of event strength and work-family conflict

Purpose – Most employees are forced to telework due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which brings novel, disruptive, and critical challenges both in work and life. Based on event system theory and equity theory, this research explores how and when forced teleworking event strength (i.e. novelty, disruption, and criticality) affects employees’ work and life-related outcomes. Design/methodology/approach – We conducted two studies to test the hypothesized moderated mediation model (Study 1: an experiment survey, N = 141; Study 2: a time-lagged survey, N = 243) with employees forced to telework from China. Findings – The results largely support our hypotheses. Study 1 indicates that the manipulation of forced teleworking event strength (high vs low) is effective, and the main effect of forced teleworking event strength on work-family conflict is significant. Moreover, Study 2 shows that work-family conflict mediates the relationship between forced teleworking event strength (i.e. novelty, disruption, and criticality) and counterproductive work behavior (CWB). Furthermore, perceived overqualification positively moderates the relationship between work-family conflict and CWB. In detail, the relationship between work-family conflict and CWB becomes stronger when perceived overqualification is higher. Originality/value – This research provides a new perspective on how forced teleworking event strength impacts CWB and advances the literature on the relevant theories.